Dublin and Charles II.

I beg to ask Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he can state why an allowance of £714 11s. 8d. is, and has been since 1801, paid annually out of the Consolidated Fund to the Lord Mayor and citizens of Dublin; what portion thereof, if any, reaches the citizens; and is this charge on the Consolidated Fund perpetual.

The allowance is charged permanently on the Consolidated Fund by the Act 41, Geo. III., Cap. 32. It represents (1) a perpetual annuity of £500 (Irish currency) granted by Charles II. for services rendered by the city to himself and his father; and (2) another perpetual annuity of £300 (Irish) representing the pay of a captaincy of Foot which had been conferred on the Lord Mayor and his successors. The payments up to the time of the Union were charged on the Irish Civil List. The allowance is paid to the cashier of the Bank of Ireland as attorney for the Corporation. I have no information as to its subsequent application.